1. (Field of the Invention)
The present invention relates to a wind deflector for a sunroof which is mounted on a vehicle, and particularly to the mounting structure of a deflector panel.
2. (Description of Related Art)
A wind deflector used for a sunroof is disposed at the front end of an opening in a roof so as to reduce aerial vibration, called wind throb, in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. With such a wind deflector mounted on a sunroof having a slidable panel covering an opening in the roof, when the panel is slid backward, a deflector panel is simultaneously raised. The deflector panel is axially supported by the roof so as to be able to rotate.
FIG. 8 shows an example of this type of conventional wind deflector, in which a wind deflector 10 is mounted on a slidable panel housing 13 disposed on the inside of a fixed roof 12 through hinges 11. Each of the hinges 11 comprises, as shown in FIG. 9, a hinge piece 11A fixed to the slidable panel housing 13 and a hinge piece 11B fixed to the deflector panel. These hinge pieces are axially supported through a hinge pin 11C.
The effect of the deflector panel 10 on wind throb increases as the height of the deflector panel from the fixed roof 12 increases and as the deflector panel is positioned more rearwardly on the vehicle.
However, there is a problem in that the degree of wind noise produced by the deflector panel increases as the height of the above-described projection increases. In addition, the degree of wind noise also increases as the attack angle .alpha. of the deflector panel 10 increases.
Therefore, to significantly reduce both wind throb and wind noise:
(1) The rotational center of the deflector panel 10 should be is positioned as far toward the front of the vehicle as possible because the upper end of the deflector panel 10 can be placed at the rear of the vehicle and the attack angle o can be minimized, while the necessary height of projection of the deflector panel 10 can be maintained. PA0 (2) The rotational center of the deflector panel 10 should be placed at as high a position as possible on the vehicle because the upper end of the deflector panel 10 can be positioned toward the rear of the vehicle and the space between the deflector panel 10 and the front end of the opening in the roof can be increased, while the necessary height of the upper end can be maintained.
A wind deflector which satisfies these criteria has been proposed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 117222/1985. This wind deflector shown in FIG. 10, has hinges 16 axially supported by a fixed roof 12 by a pin 15 through a bracket 14, and a deflector panel 10 fixed to the ends of the hinges 16.
The rotation of the deflector panel 10 is controlled by arms 17 which are mounted on a slidable panel housing 13 or housing for a slidable panel provided on the fixed roof 12. Because the mounting of the slidable panel housing 13 to the fixed roof 12 is not always identical for all vehicles, the deflector panel 10 in some cases does not assume the desired precise upright or stowed position and thus the above-described goal of achieving reduction in wind throb and wind noise is, in some instances, not achieved.
Mounting the hinge 16 on the slidable panel housing 13 does not provide a complete solution because the hinges 16 cross a rain gutter 19 formed around the slidable panel housing 13, and rainwater in some cases moves along the hinges 16 and drops into the passenger compartment of the vehicle.
In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a wind deflector for a sunroof which serves to significantly reduce the degree of wind throb and the level of wind noise when the deflector panel is upright and which does not allow rainwater to enter the passenger compartment of the vehicle via hinges.
To this end, the wind deflector of the present invention for a sunroof mounted on a vehicle comprises hinge means each having two first hinge pieces pivotally connected to each other by means of a hinge pin disposed at a position forward of the front end of an opening formed in the roof, each of the two hinge pieces projecting downwardly above a rain gutter provided below the opening; and a deflector panel which is supported by one of the two hinge pieces so that it can be moved between a first position where it is stowed in the roof and a second position where it projects above the roof.
In the present invention configured as described above, since the hinge pins are placed forward of the front end of the opening in the roof, the deflector panel can be mounted in such a manner that wind throb and wind noise are both significantly reduced.
In addition, since the hinge means each comprises the two first hinge pieces which are connected to each other through the hinge pin, the deflector panel can be mounted in a position and manner which minimizes errors produced during mounting or assembly.
Since each of the hinge pieces projects downwardly to a position above the rain gutter, rainwater is not able to enter the passenger compartment of the vehicle.